Hundreds turn out to public forum to discuss skyrocketing water bills

Following the discovery that hundreds of San Diegans were collectively overcharged more than $100,000 on their water bills, Mayor Kevin Faulconer announced Thursday that he’s expanding an internal investigation of the Public Utilities Department.

Following the discovery that hundreds of San Diegans were collectively overcharged more than $100,000 on their water bills, Mayor Kevin Faulconer announced Thursday that he’s expanding an internal investigation of the Public Utilities Department.

Hundreds of frustrated and angry residents turned out Thursday night for a city-held public forum at Mira Mesa Senior Center to address surging water bills — a long-simmering controversy that has now reached a boiling point.

For more than three hours, one resident after another stepped to the microphone to address officials with the Public Utilities Department. Nearly all had stories of being charged for water they didn’t use, causing their bills to skyrocket by hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars.

“You can say all you want about what you’re going to do in the future to make this better so that it never happens again, but what we want right now is resolving what we’ve experienced,” said Ken Johnson of Mira Mesa to cheers from a packed room.

Antonio Jasso, 45, of Southeast San Diego blasted the water department for not taking his situation seriously: “Your public service has to be better. Every time we call, they give us the runaround. My bills are $600 when they used to be $200. Something’s wrong with the system here.”

While people repeatedly complained about poor customer service and massive overcharges, water department officials said they would move quickly to address individual issues.

“We want to hear about what’s happening with your bill,” said Vic Bianes, director of the city of San Diego Public Utilities Department. “We’re interested in seeing what you have with your personal situation.”

At the back of the room, city officials worked with customers who lined up to have their bills examined individually.

William Probert, 63, of Carmel Valley was one of those residents looking for answers about spiking charges for water.

“I’m happy they’re doing this, but they don’t have much news for us,” he said. “They said there’s no explanation for this bill.”

Following the discovery that hundreds of San Diegans were collectively overcharged more than $100,000 on their water bills, Mayor Kevin Faulconer announced Thursday that he’s expanding an internal investigation of the Public Utilities Department.

“Over the last month, too many of our customers have been inconvenienced, and that’s why I have asked our city’s independent Auditor Eduardo Luna to make the audit of the city’s Public Utilities Department his top priority,” Faulconer said at a press conference earlier in the day.

For weeks, residents from around the city have complained about massive charges for water they never used.

As residents across the city have said they're getting billed for water they didn't use, water department officials have downplayed the outcry.

As residents across the city have said they're getting billed for water they didn't use, water department officials have downplayed the outcry.

Water department officials routinely dismissed these concerns, saying the charges were likely due to leaking pipes or other inadvertent uses. Authorities also reminded customers that a citywide rate increase of 6.9 percent took effect in August.

Following mounting public pressure, the city announced last week that an employee had misread 343 meters dating back to November in the neighborhoods of Carmel Valley, Mira Mesa, Rancho Bernardo and Rancho Peñasquitos.

Customers who overpaid by more than $50 were told they will receive a refund in the mail, with the rest getting a credit on their next bill.

At the public forum in Mira Mesa, residents waited in a long line to find out if they were on the list of people who were owed money.

Dolores Gutierrez wanted to know if her 94-year-old mother who lives in Mira Mesa might get a refund — but had no luck.

“Even with her conservation, her water bill kept going up,” Gutierrez said. “The customer service people said she has to have a leak. I’m just trying to help her.”

Councilman Chris Cate, who represents the recently identified neighborhoods that were impacted, said at the meeting in Mira Mesa that he wanted to give people the chance to not only get answers but vent their frustrations.

“This was an opportunity for folks to let the department know how they feel,” he said. “This is obviously a very charged issue. It’s a very emotional issue when you’re talking about someone’s water and the water bill.”

Councilwoman Lori Zapf, who chairs the City Council Audit Committee, said at the press conference that she’s concerned the issue is citywide.

“What we’re learning is very troubling,” she said. “Obviously, in Mr. Cate’s district it’s been significant, but all of us have been hearing from constituents about water bills.”

Faulconer said that the city will reimburse everyone in the city who has been improperly charged for water.

“If somebody has an individual question on their bill and thinks that it was misread or done wrong, it’s incumbent on the city to go out there, treat that customer with dignity and respect, to look at that individual bill and address their issues,” he said.

City Councilwoman Barbara Bry — who first called for the audit in January — praised Faulconer’s announcement.

“I’m pleased to see the mayor’s taking it seriously and that he’s asking the City Auditor to expedite the audit,” she said Thursday.

The audit, which is expected to be completed by June, will attempt to determine whether the water department is accurately billing customers throughout the city and whether mistakes such as misreads are being caught and corrected in a timely fashion. The review will also look at what role, if any, recently installed smart meters have played in the debacle.

Faulconer said that he’s asked the department to increase the number of people answering calls on the water department’s hotline: (619) 515-3500. Residents with concerns about their bills can also email the city at water@sandiego.gov.

Until the audit concludes, officials said that customers fighting high bills will continue to have access to water as long as they pay an amount equal to their average usage or what they were charged in the previous year during the same time period.